About us

Achim Steiner

Achim Steiner became UNDP Administrator on 19 June 2017 and will serve for a term of four years. The United Nations General Assembly confirmed his nomination on 19 April 2017, following his nomination by Secretary-General António Guterres.

Mr. Steiner is also the Vice-Chair of the UN Development Group, which unites the 32 UN funds, programmes, specialized agencies and other bodies that work to support sustainable development.

Over nearly three decades, Achim Steiner has been a global leader on sustainable development, climate resilience and international cooperation. He has worked tirelessly to champion sustainability, economic growth and equality for the vulnerable, and has been a vocal advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Prior to joining UNDP, he was Director of the Oxford Martin School and Professorial Fellow of Balliol College, University of Oxford. Mr Steiner has served across the United Nations system, looking at global challenges from both a humanitarian and a development perspective. He led the United Nations Environment Programme (2006-2016), helping governments invest in clean technologies and renewable energy. He was also Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi. Achim Steiner previously held other notable positions including Director General of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, and Secretary General of the World Commission on Dams.

Achim Steiner has lived and worked in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Latin America and the United States. He graduated in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (MA) from Worcester College, Oxford University and holds an MA from the University of London/School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

Tegegnework Gettu

Associate Administrator

Tegegnework Gettu

Associate Administrator

Mr. Tegegnework Gettu was appointed by the Secretary-General as United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on 1 December 2015.

Mr. Gettu previously served as the Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management from 10 June 2013 to 30 November 2015.

Mr. Gettu has had a long and distinguished career at UNDP, previously serving as Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa from 2009 to May 2013, where he provided overall leadership in development work and shaped UNDP’s engagement and corporate strategic direction in the region. Prior to that, he was the Chief of Staff to UNDP’s Administrator and Director of UNDP’s Executive Office from 2006 to 2009, a position in which he performed strategic functions at the core of UNDP’s global operations.

Mr. Gettu also served as UNDP Resident Representative in Nigeria from 2003 to 2006, as Acting Resident Representative in Sierra Leone and Liberia from 1997 to 1999, and also as Country Director for Southern and Eastern African countries and Indian Ocean countries in the UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa. He was also the Programme Manager and Deputy Director for the Structural Adjustment Advisory Team for Africa stationed in Zimbabwe while working as Senior Economist covering eastern and southern Africa from 1989 to 1997.

Prior to joining the United Nations system, Mr. Gettu was a fellow at Columbia University, Assistant Professor and Lecturer at the University of Rochester, at Hunter College (both in New York), and lecturer at Addis Ababa University (in Ethiopia). He has also worked in the Ethiopian Ministry of Planning and Economic Development and the private sector.

Mr. Gettu holds a Ph.D. and a Master’s degree in Politics and Economics, and International Relations from Columbia University and a Bachelor’s degree in Development Administration from Addis Ababa University. He also has a certificate in African Studies from Columbia University.

Mr. Gettu is married and has two children.

Abdoulaye Mar Dieye

Regional Bureau for Africa

Abdoulaye Mar Dieye

Regional Bureau for Africa

Abdoulaye Mar Dieye was appointed Assistant Administrator and Director of UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Africa by the United Nations Secretary-General in July 2013.

He was previously Chief of Staff and Director of UNDP’s Executive Office. Until 2009, Mr. Dieye was Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Director of UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Arab States in New York, overseeing UNDP programme portfolios in the Middle East, Northern Africa and the Gulf Countries.

From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Dieye served as Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in the UN Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) followed by appointments as UN Resident Coordinator, UN Designated Official for Security, Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in the country.

Prior to that, he held several senior positions with UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Africa from 1995 to 2003, respectively as Senior Economist, Chief of Staff, Chief Economist and Chief of Policy and Country Director of Programmes and Operations for West Africa.

From 1988 to1995, Mr. Dieye worked with the UN Department for Technical Cooperation and Development (UN/DTCD) and the UN Department of Economic and Social Development (UN/DESD) as a Technical Adviser and as an Interregional Adviser on Development Policies and Planning. He served, with UN/DTCD, as Macroeconomist and Chief Technical Adviser to the Ministry of Planning and Development in Burkina Faso (1986-1988) and to the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation in Haiti (1984-1986).

Prior to joining the UN System, Mr. Dieye worked with the Government of Senegal, as Chief of the General Planning Division (1976-1982) and Inspector General (1982-1984) in the Ministry of Planning and Cooperation. Mr. Dieye was also a lecturer in Econometrics, Statistics and Theory of Probabilities at the University of Dakar in Senegal and a lecturer in Techniques of Development Planning and Operational Research at the National School of Applied Economics (ENEA) in Senegal.

Mr. Dieye, a Senegalese national, graduated from the École Nationale de la Statistique et de l’Administration Économique (ENSAE-CESD) of the Institut National de la Statistique et des Études Economiques (INSEE) in France. He also studied Advanced and Specialized Mathematics in France and holds a Masters in Development Studies, Economic Policy and Planning from the Institute of Social Studies in The Netherlands.

Jessica Faieta

Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean

Jessica Faieta

Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean

Jessica Faieta was appointed Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean on 7 May 2014.

Ms. Faieta previously held the position of Deputy Assistant Administrator of the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean since October 2012 and was Senior Country Director in Haiti, leading UNDP's recovery and reconstruction efforts in Haiti after the January 2010 earthquake. Prior to her assignment in Haiti, she was the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in El Salvador and Belize (2007-2010). From 2005 to 2006, she served in the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General, first as Principal Officer to the Chef de Cabinet then as Director of the Office of the Deputy Secretary-General. Ms. Faieta was also the Deputy Director and Deputy Chief of Staff in the Office of the UNDP Administrator.

She started her career with UNDP in 1991 as a UN Volunteer programme officer in Guyana. She joined the Management Training Programme in 1993 as Policy Officer and subsequently became Special Assistant to the Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau for Finance and Administration. In 1997, she was appointed Deputy Resident Representative (DRR) in Cuba. She also served as DRR in Panama (1998-2001) and in Argentina (2001-2002). Before joining UNDP, she worked for the Canadian Embassy in Ecuador (1987-1991).

Ms. Faieta is an Ecuadorian national and holds a Master's degree in Business Administration and another in International Affairs, both from Columbia University. She is also a Yale University World Fellow.

Magdy Martínez-Solimán

Bureau for Policy and Programme Support

Magdy Martínez-Solimán

Magdy Martínez-Solimán is Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, and UNDP’s Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support. Prior to this appointment he was the Deputy Director, Bureau for Development Policy, UNDP.

He is a lawyer by training, a former practicing barrister and Assistant Professor of International Law. He has worked and written on Political Systems and provided legal counseling in Constitutional and Administrative Law.

In his professional career, he has been State Secretary for Youth in the Spanish National Government, CEO of two public corporations and member of the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games in Barcelona 92. He was also Deputy Minister of the Prime Minister’s Office, in charge of relations with the Parliament of Andalusia, and elected member of the Municipal Council of his hometown Malaga, the fourth city of the country.

Mr. Martínez-Solimán has been working for the UN for 20 years, focusing on electoral assistance, public financial management, democratic transitions and national dialogue. He was posted in Burundi, Togo, Bangladesh and Senegal. He was UNDP’s Senior Governance Adviser for the 18 West African countries from 2000 to 2003, and until 2006, he was the Practice Manager of UNDP’s Democratic Governance Team at Headquarters. That year he was appointed by the UN Secretary-General as the first Executive Director of the UN Democracy Fund.

From January 2008 until February 2012, he was the UN Resident Coordinator in Mexico and UNDP’s Resident Representative.

He is UNDP's senior focal point for the 2030 Agenda.

Mr. Martínez-Solimán initiated his Law Studies at the University Complutense of Madrid, holds a degree in Law (Juris Doctor) from the Universidad de Malaga and has been a Member of the Spanish Bar Association since 1984.

Susan McDade

Bureau for Management Services

Susan McDade

Bureau for Management Services

Susan McDade is the Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau for Management Services at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Ms. McDade previously served as Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Director for UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean. Prior to this, she served as Director of Country Actions with the UN Secretary-General's Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) initiative from July 2013, United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative, UNFPA Representative and UN Designated Officials in Uruguay (2010-2013) and in Cuba (2006-2010). She was the Manager of the Sustainable Energy Programme for UNDP’s Bureau for Development Policy (2000-2006) in New York, positioning the organization as a global leader on energy and sustainable development issues.

Ms. McDade started her career with UNDP in 1991 as a Junior Professional Officer with the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean in Guatemala. She was Assistant Resident Representative in China (1992-1996) and subsequently became a Technical Specialist on energy, for the Bureau for Programme and Policy Support in New York (1996-1999). Before joining UNDP, she worked as a Visiting Lecturer and Research and Teaching Assistant with the Institute of Social Studies in Netherlands.

Ms. McDade, a Canadian national, holds an MA from the ISS in Development Studies specializing in Economic Policy and Planning and a BA in Economics and International Development from the University of Guelph in Canada. In 1999 Ms. McDade was a visiting fellow at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. She was a guest lecturer on the topics of energy and development at Columbia, Rice and Princeton Universities.

Michael O’Neill

Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy

Michael O’Neill

Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy

Michael O’Neill (United Kingdom) joined UNDP in February 2014, as Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy, with the rank of UN Assistant Secretary-General.

Prior to this appointment, Mr. O'Neill was a British diplomat, serving most recently in London as Chair of the Prime Minister's Gulf Strategy Group in the UK Cabinet Office.

Mr. O'Neill previously served as British Ambassador to Qatar (2012-2013); Head of Mission, Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team, and ISAF Senior Civilian Representative in South-West Afghanistan (2010-2012); UK Special Representative for Sudan, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, London (2007-2010); External Relations Counsellor, UK Representation to the European Union, Brussels (2006-2007); Economic & Social Counsellor, UK Mission to the United Nations, New York (2002-2006); First Secretary Politico-Military Affairs, British Embassy and Institute for National Security Studies, Washington, D.C. (1998-2002); First Secretary, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, London (1994-1998),including as the Foreign Secretary's Speechwriter and as Private Secretary to Lord Owen as Co-Chair of the International Conference on the Former Yugoslavia; Second Secretary (Defence), UK Delegation to NATO, Brussels (1991-1994), and Administrative Trainee, Ministry of Defence, London (1988-1991).

Mr. O’Neill holds a MA in Classics & Modern History from Brasenose College, Oxford University, and a MSc in West European Politics from the London School of Economics

Cihan Sultanoğlu

Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States

Cihan Sultanoğlu

Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States

Ms. Ayse Cihan Sultanoğlu (Turkey) is the Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations; and Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (RBEC) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). She was appointed to this position by the UN Secretary-General in April 2012.

Ms. Sultanoğlu has had many years of distinguished service at UN/UNDP, including leadership positions at the country and headquarters level. Cihan previously served as the Director of Human Resources in UNDP’s Bureau of Management. Prior to this, she served as Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Director, RBEC (2007-2010); UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Belarus (2004-2007); UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Lithuania (2000-2005); Deputy Resident Representative in Morocco (1995-2000); Deputy to the Director of the Office of the Administrator (1993-1995); Recruitment Officer and later Staffing Specialist for Junior Professional Officers (JPO), Division of Personnel (1988-1993); Recruitment Officer, Division of Personnel, (1986-1988); Administrative Officer, UNDP Malawi (1982-1985). She started her career as an administrative trainee in New York and Bangkok, Thailand (1981-1982).

Ms. Sultanoğlu holds a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from the School of International Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University as well as a BA in Economics from Barnard College at Columbia University, New York. She speaks Turkish, English and French. She was awarded with the “Order of the Commander of the Cross” by the President of Lithuania in 2005.

Mourad Wahba

Regional Bureau for Arab States

Mourad Wahba

Regional Bureau for Arab States

Mr. Mourad Wahba (Egypt) is Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, Assistant Administrator of UNDP and Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States. He was appointed to this position by the Secretary-General of the United Nations in November of 2016 and assumed duties on 1 February 2017.

Mr. Wahba has had many years of distinguished service at the United Nations and UNDP. Most recently, he served as the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Haiti. Prior to this, he served as Deputy Director and Deputy Assistant Administrator in the Regional Bureau of Arab States, UNDP, in New York (2013-2015); Director, Security Office, UNDP Bureau of Management, New York (2009-2013); UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative (2006-2009) in Morocco; Director, United Nations Affairs, UNDP New York (2001-2006); and Deputy Resident Representative in Guyana (1999-2001).

Mr. Wahba began his career with the United Nations in 1993, as a Senior Officer in the Office of the Secretary-General. Before joining the UN, Mourad was an Associate Professor of Economics at the American University in Cairo, and a Visiting Lecturer on International Political Economy at the Institute for Diplomatic Studies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egypt (1987-1993).

Haoliang Xu

Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific

Haoliang Xu

Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific

Haoliang Xu was appointed Assistant Administrator and Director for the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific by the United Nations Secretary-General in September 2013.

Previously, Mr. Xu was Deputy Regional Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States in New York since 2010.

Prior to this, he served as UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Kazakhstan (2007-2010); Country Director in Pakistan (2005-2007); Deputy Resident Representative for Programme, Pakistan (2004-2005); Country Manager and Senior Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Timor-Leste (2002-2004); Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Iran (2000-2002); Programme Manager, Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, New York (1997-1999); Programme Officer/Junior Professional Officer, UNDP Kazakhstan (1997-1999). Mr. Xu was a consultant for the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) working as Associate Project Management Officer in the Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS, New York (1994-1995); and as a Research Assistant with the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in New York (1994).

Before joining the UN, Mr. Xu was a computer-aided design engineer with Louis Berger International Inc. in New Jersey and an assistant lecturer at Tongji University in Shanghai, China.

Mr. Xu, a Chinese national, holds a Bachelors in Engineering from Tongji University in Shanghai, and a Masters’ of Science in Management from the Stevens Institute of Technology (USA). He also holds a Masters’ of International Affairs in Economic Development and Policy Analysis from Columbia University (USA).